QUESTIONS ANSWERED BY YOUR FAVORIT BRANDS

• What is "Clothing with a Conscience"?

• Here's what should be in the ground: rocks, roots, worms. Yet around the world, about 150 billion water bottles are put into landfills every year. That kind of waste just doesn't seem right. But together, we can make a difference. Or literally, we can wear a difference.

  Putting some revolutionary technology to work, Earthtec is converting these landfill-bound bottles into extraordinary, high-performance fabrics made from post-consumer recycled polyethylene terephthalate plastics, or recycled PET.

  We're taking other important steps, too. We're working with organic cotton and wool. We're exploring innovative natural and earth-friendly fibers, and developing hybrid fabrics that blend recycled synthetics with renewable materials. And we're using a streamlined manufacturing model that builds value into our garments while taking carbon out of our footprint.

  Today, every single piece of clothing we make uses recycled or renewable materials. You could call it eco-apparel. We call it clothing with a conscience. Stuff you can really feel good in – from the mountaintop to the coffee shop.

• What does 100% Frog-Certified mean?

• Do you believe in good omens? We hope you will whenever you see the Earthtec frog.

  That's because our frog is more than a logo. It's a symbol of our partnership with you, a partnership built on better choices. On the yin side, we've decided to invest a lot of brainpower figuring out how to make clothes that conserve our natural resources. And on the yang side, we know that when you choose to purchase Earthtec, you're consciously choosing to wear something that goes easier on our environment.

  Seeing the frog out there can make us all proud. It's a sign of good things to come, an affirmation of our collective mission to do the world a world of good.

  That's what leaping greener is all about.

• Tell Us About Your Materials & Manufacturing?

• At Earthtec, we strive to bring you function-first apparel that puts our environment first too. Clothes that are greener for the people who make them, greener for the people who wear them, and greener for the planet in general. The big idea is to improve technical performance and ecological health at the same time. To that end, we're proud to say that every product on the Earthtec family tree is responsibly made from recycled or renewable fabrics. 100% frog-certified.

  GREENER TEXTILES: With a focus on recycled polyester, organic cotton, and wool, we are always working with emerging eco-textiles too. New materials made from recycled nylon, corn, even coffee beans. And hybrids that blend recycled synthetics with natural fibers for better moisture management, better water and wind resistance, better comfort, better durability, better greenitude.

  GREENER METHODS: Our streamlined design and manufacturing model is built around sustainability. For instance, we do our own product development, knitting, dyeing, finishing, and garment production. By bringing the parts closer together, we can put more value into our apparel and less crud into the earth, oceans, and skies. When each of us does our part, we all succeed.

• What Kind of Materials are You Using?

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  RECYCLED PET

  Ever seen the reincarnation of an inanimate object? We have.

  PET, or polyethylene terephthalate, accounts for almost all of the rigid plastic packaging consumed in the United States. It's used to make ketchup bottles, peanut butter jars, detergent jugs, and countless other containers. The ugly part is once we're done with the packaging, we throw most of it away. Every year around the world, about 150 billion plastic water bottles are tossed into landfills.

  But there is hope. Using some game-changing technology, we can clean, shred, melt, and recycle this waste plastic - converting it into polyester yarn and giving it new life as fleece and other fabrics that rival the best virgin polyester for softness, comfort, and durability.

  By using one pound of recycled yarn instead of virgin poly yarn, we save almost half a gallon of gasoline, and 50,000 BTUs of energy. So we're using fewer resources to start with and polluting less along the way.

  
  

  

  ORGANIC COTTON

  Cotton sounds pretty pure and simple.

  Unfortunately, conventionally raised cotton is one of the most chemically dependent crops in the world. More than 10% of all agricultural chemicals and 25% of insecticides are used to grow cotton on just 3% of the world’s cultivated land. The dismal truth is that there’s about a third of a pound of chemicals behind that ordinary cotton t-shirt.

  The answer is 100% organic cotton. You love it and so do we. The extraordinary farmers we work with maintain the highest industry standards and certifications. That way, we are sure we’re getting superior quality, genetically unmodified cotton grown without the use of herbicides, pesticides, or synthetic fertilizers.

  One of our goals is to support environmentally conscientious producers in a global effort to improve the health and fertility of the earth’s arable soil. To do this, we are increasing the use of organic fabrics in our line wherever we can. Each time you purchase one of our organic styles, you are helping to make a cleaner, greener world.

  
  

  

  NATURAL WOOL

  When you get right down to it, wool is the original technical garment fiber. All-natural and versatile, wool repels water to keep you dry, traps body heat to keep you warm, and breathes to keep you comfortable.

  Better still, wool is renewable and sustainable. We get our wool from accredited ranchers who treat their animals humanely, manage their lands responsibly, and process their raw wool fibers as greenly as possible.

  At Earthtec, we are continuously working in the development of hybrid fabrics that combine natural wool and recycled synthetic fibers for the best in moisture management, water and wind resistance, comfort, durability, and easy care.

  So what’s the bottom line? Wool is a low-impact, eco-friendly resource with high-performance characteristics. We like it a lot and want to use more of it. Look for new Earthtec wool and wool-blend products coming soon.